My HBCU football game of the week is in Orangeburg, S.C., between the undefeated Bethune Cookman Wildcats and the MEAC champion South Carolina State Bulldogs.

Both teams come to the highly anticipated contest ranked in the HBCU top 25 -- the Wildcats entering the ranking for the first time since 2003 at number 23 and the Bulldogs sitting comfortably at number 10.

SC State is on a quest to repeat -- I’m sorry “three-peat” -- as MEAC conference champions. The Bulldogs have won the last two conference championships, and with an undefeated conference record and a 4-1 record overall this year, they are looking to add at least one more. SC State’s lone loss came during the first game of the season against the triple option threat of Georgia Tech. The Bulldogs are boasting a 20-game win streak against conference opponents but are well aware that the Wildcats are looking to put an end to the streak this weekend.

Averaging nearly 50 points a game and 540 total yards of offense per game, Bethune Cookman leads the nation in scoring and total offense. The Wildcats are 5-0 for the first time in the school’s history, and the start can be attributed to the hard work of first-year coach Brian Jenkins.

Coach Jenkins, when asked about his team’s preparation for the Bulldogs, stated: “I see the film and I can’t tell if they’re South Carolina State or the South Carolina Gamecocks. They’re that good. They run well, they’re physical. They don’t give up the big play. They don’t make mistakes. They tackle well. They rally to the football.”

Don’t let Jenkins’ modesty fool you. Much like head football coach Connell Maynor of Winston-Salem State, he is a star on the rise. Coach Jenkins will have his Wildcats prepared.

All good things must come to an end, and I predict that Bethune Cookman will not only put an end to SC State’s conference win streak but to their delusions of a three-peat also. Bethune Cookman’s high-powered offense will be too much for the stingy defense of South Carolina State. I’m calling it 28- 24 in a high-impact, hard-hitting game.

In the other close battle, the SC State Marching 101 gets the battle of the bands title.

Check out the video clip above.

Sign up for our Weekly Email Newsletter Email: For Email Marketing you can trust

Other Ways to Share Twitter Del.icio.us MySpace

Discussions and Submission Agreement